Canon Auto Zoom 518 Super 8 movie camera: Sapper Neal Whitney Vansleve, 32 Small Ships Company, RAE

Aluminium, plastic and steel Canon Super 8 Auto Zoom 518 movie camera, the right hand side equipped with a sliding button for access to the door for loading the film cannister; this has clear plastic window allowing quick identification of the film type. There is an idenification plate with a cable release socket, alongside a shutter lock dial (marked R for running and L for lock), below which is a film speed selector switch (SLOW MOTION or 18 feet per second). Above this are two plastic buttons - T for telephoto or W for wide angle; selecting these engages the power zoom.

The right hand side is equipped with a film footage indicator; a nameplate (CANON INC. JAPAN) which serves as a battery cover; a small circular window containing a film transport indicator; a remote control socket with a battery testing window; and underneath the base two buttons for testing the batteries (the red one tests the AA batteries; the white one tests the button mercury batteries).

At the rear top of the case is the view finder and a screw knob for releasing the AA battery cover. The underneath of the camera is impressed with the serial number '161521'.

The black plastic handle contains the wheel for selecting AUTO and MANUAL apeture controls and at the rear a sliding control for the CAA (colour conversion filter for tungstan film) mechanism. The base of the handle contains a battery cover and a tripod fitting; the front is equipped with a grey plastic trigger. There is a checker's sticker carrying the words 'J014-81 / PASSED / JMDC' on the right hand side of the handle.

The F1.8 zoom lens is fitted with a manual zoom button and a plastic lens cap (now REL22431.001.002) moulded with the word 'CANON'.

Film taken with the camera is accessioned as F04003.

A Canon Super 8 movie camera used by Neal Whitney Vansleve whilst serving in Vietnam from 2 July 1968 until 21 January 1969. Born in Brisbane on 22 April 1947, Vansleve served with 32 Small Ship Squadron, Royal Australian Engineers as a sapper engineer under service number 1200940. He operated on board the Landing Ship, Medium (LSM) AV1356 'Clive Steele', an immediately post-Second World War craft that served in Vietnam from 1965 to 1971. It and three other LSMs were sold to Australia in 1960, having seen action with the US Navy during the Korean War.

The LSM was primarily designed to transport, beach and land men and equipment - in Australia's case, the Centurion tank, of which approximately 48 served in Vietnam; and the M113, an armoured personel carrier. of which over 160 served. The LSM could carry up to 306 tons - in essence, four Centurion tanks.

The Clive Steele was based at Vung Tau and during the seven months of his operational tour, Sapper Vansleve recorded life aboard the LSM, filming fellow crew members as they went about their daily routine at Vung Tau, Phan Rang, Dong Tam, and Saigon; and recorded the repairs to the damage caused by a Viet Cong rocket attack on the LSM, unloading Centurion tanks at Vung Tau; damaged Centurion tanks being manoeuvred aboard, leave in Saipan; and scenes of aerial activity associated with US forces as well as scenes of the Vietnamese countryside taken when Vansleve was on leave.